A TRIP Up
MOUNT MANSFIELD
By SrI.'1-' ROBISON
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R,dph Waldo
c."1HerSOIJ, ill
the carly J870s.
In August of 1868, Ralph Waldo Emerson
traveled from his home in Concord, Massachusetts to Middlebury College to speak at
graduation. It was his third trip to the college.
This time his daughter Ellen came with him.
Emerson was a world-famous writer and
speaker. He was also a leader of the philosophical movement known as Transcendentalism.!
We can learn a lot noout the human side of
this famous man from letters Ellen Tucker
Emerson wrote home to her brother, sister,
and uncle. ''''e can also learn about how people
from Boston viewed life in the Vermont
countryside.
The Emcrsons arrived in1\liddlebury by
train at about seven o'clock on a rainy August
morning. Breakfast at a local hotel was not a big
success:
Tbe way we were pm offfrom 0111' breakfast
was detestable. 'Tables fidl siJ:' 'Ready in J0
I The Transcendentalists believed that there is more to the
world than what can be seen, that not everything can be
explained by reason.
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minutes si1:' U1e waited 20. 'Not quite
"eady si?; in ten minutes. ' U1e 1"etllnled in
ten. 'Be nady di?'eetly sh:' Ute ,-etired to tbe
par/or and 7vere summoned after (J while....
Time was preciolls to Fatber &- be was
disgusted nt boving on bour so wasted
fir hi1l1.
Following breakfast, a band and procession
escorted Emerson to the Congregational
Church, where special college events were
held. Though the graduating class had only
fifteen students, the church was full. The
students were pleased with the speech, and so
was Ellen Emerson, who reported,
I tbougbt tbe omtion 2 was a beauty, and
Fatbn' had 110 f1'ouble about seeing, ond
"ead on quite sf1-nigbt, and looked as well
and as mllc/; nt elise liS be eve,- did. 1 ClIme
bome fJuite proud, lind Fatbe7' Vel) 'well
content.
81m Tucker £1IIn"$ol1, around J868.
The local newspaper, Tbe Middlebll7Y
Registel; reported that Emerson "held the
audience spellbound, though everyone was
ready to affirm that they did not like him."
Many religious and community leaders disliked
Ralph Waldo Emerson because he and the
other Transcendentalists thought that people
can find spirirual truth for themselves, without
the need for churches.
That afternoon, on the way back from
visiting some falls on Otter C.reek, the axle,tree3 of their cart broke, and It began to ram.
2 Oration means speech.
J The axle-tree runs under the Clrt, from one side to the
tither. The wheels are connected to it_
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Emerson had long planned to meet one of
his oldest friends, George Bradford, in Essex
Junction and then walk up i\1ount i\1ansfield.
\¥hen the train arrived that night, however,
Bradford was nOt on it. So father and daughter
went by stagecoach to Underhill. The next day
they set out on a long, wet hike to the top of
the mountain.
The Emersons walked along rhe muddy road
until some "charitable people" helped them get
back to tOWIl. "That shon walk cured me of
wishing to live in Vermont," Ellen wrote.
"They have a clay soil. J never saw any before,
and hope never to set foot on it, when wet,
again. Father was equally disgusted."
Later that day, they took the train to Essex
Junction. They spent the next day relaxing by
the \Ninooski River. Emerson thought such a
beautiful place should have a beautiful name.
"Onion River" was a great disappoinonent to
him, so he called it "the Onino" River instead.
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Tht HalfWay Hot/st Oil MOil'" ,\[a11sjitld.
First they walked along a carriage road.
Hiktrr on ,l/Oll'" Momfitld in tht 1860s. COI1 yOIl
imogi11t climbing 0 1IIOI11Jtain il1 tbost clotbts?
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... fTJbose tbree miles to tbe Hnlf-u.J0Y HOllse
stretched fl good deal ill wfllkillg.... Up & lip
foreve1' and eve1: .. .At last we 1wlcbed it;
evelY room and doset was wide open &
absolutely empty....So we set /011b [again,
witbout allytbing to eat}....[Lntrr on,}. .. an
opening in tbe woods sbowed us tbe mighty
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A TRI P UP MOUNT MANSFIELD
A TRIP UP NIOUNT MANSfiELD
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pe1pendiClllnr wall fof tbe momltain} still ill
tbe distance witl; tbe obstinate cloud lower
down thfm evel:.,. UJe were Vel) anxious nil
tbe way ftrfen,. it WIlS n foa/bmwy 1l11de1'taking & finIcal' it sbould min bm'd, and
yet we did enjoy going up....
The walk from the Halfway House to the
top took more than two hours. During this
time, Emerson kept Ellen amused by his comments. She reponed his company as "all delightful."
\Vhen they at last reached the horel at
the top of Mount Mansfield, "out rushed
Uncle George" Bradford, who asked about
their baggage.
UIe bad 1/one....How could Farber have
1JIisundentood, tbis was tbe end oftbe
jOllnJey, tbis was wbere Patber bad promised to stay severnl days... .[IJll 1IIy fatigue I
was glad we hadu't brought even the
weight ofa toothbrush.
Revived by the parlor fire and a good dinner,
Emerson and Bradford hiked around the windy
mountaintop, the highest point in Vermont.
Ellen napped beside the fire and then took a
SWlset walk. She "beheld Lake Champlain in
all its enormous length and breadth, as big as I
had hoped."
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All early picture oftbe Summit HOllse on Mount
MOllsfield.
The next day they had a much more enjoyable walk down. George Bradford walked part
of the way with them and named the many
plants they saw. The group also attracted
attention from other travelers.
Most summer visitors go up and dowl1 011
horseback, so Fathe1' and I were eve'rywhere
met with wonder because we were on om"
own feet....
Ralph Waldo Emerson was famous for
writing about serious subjects and spoke to
audiences that wanted to hear his views. But it
is important to remember that even the most
famous people have families and a life outside
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of the limelight. Ellen Emerson's letters about
this wet and adventurous trip [0 Vermont in
1868 help introduce all of us to this funny,
forgetful, very human man, who was also one
of the world's most famous authors.
Rooting Around
Only a few months after the Emersons' visit,
construction began of a carriage road to the
top of Mount Mansfield. That unpaved road
still exists, but there is also a paved road to the
top for automobiles. They say that you can see
150 miles from the top on a nice day.
Family letters and diaries give a real sense
of what life in the past was like. So do old
newspapers and magazines. It's interesting
(and fun) to rook at the advertisements as
well as the articles themselves.
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